From Here to Here
by mecabitchell
Summary: One Shot: Chloe asks Beca how much she loved her, and she just said "From here." Chloe didn't get it and got mad. 52 years later, Beca's last words to her are: "To Here." Chloe still didn't get it.


"Beca, I wish you would just have some emotions for once!" Chloe screamed at the top of her lungs. Her face was red and she was standing over her girlfriend.

Beca cowered in her seat. She closed her eyes, not daring to speak. As Chloe continued to yell about how incapable Beca was of showing affection, Beca fell back into her own mind. Thinking about all the times she should've shown more affection.

" _What are we doing here?" Beca turned to face Chloe, with Cynthia Rose's legs brushing against the back of her thighs and the feel of Lilly's breath on the back of her neck. She was more than uncomfortable to be bunched up in a tent with so many other people._

" _Bonding. You seem so tense. Do you need a back massage?" Chloe reached to brush Beca's hair back, only for the brunette to move her head roughly and deny Chloe's affection._

" _Several body parts are rubbing my back right now, thank you." Beca's voice was quiet yet harsh; all Chloe was trying to do with this retreat was bring the group closer together: as a family._

 _Beca did nothing to help the situation, simply too busy with the idea of losing her internship if she's away on this trip for too long. She barely listened when Chloe mentioned something about the retreat being a good chance for everyone to get to know each other better._

 _But she heard loud and clear when Chloe said, "You know, one of my biggest regrets is not doing enough experimenting in college." Beca's eyes flicked up to look at Chloe's lips, wondering what Chloe meant by her offer._

 _Then she got inside her own head and realized, Chloe had all the power in the world to hurt her. She couldn't let herself get lost in Chloe. She would never let herself be that vulnerable again._

 _So, instead of responding to Chloe's confession, Beca jokingly insulted Chloe then literally turned her back to the girl. Beca felt tears well up in her eyes, so she forced her eyelids shut to keep from showing any signs of feelings._

"Beca, are you fucking listening to me? I can't be the only one in this relationship anymore. I love you, Beca. But I can't do this if you don't want me to." Chloe's harsh words brought Beca back to reality.

She thought carefully about what Chloe was saying. It's true that Beca wasn't exactly the romantic type, or the touchy-feely type. But she knew she loved Chloe, she just didn't know how to show it.

Chloe continued to scream at Beca, beginning to turn purple in the face as she rambled without a breath to even let Beca respond. So, she fell back into her mind again.

" _Why are you wearing that?" Beca shot up from her seat in the kitchen, eyeing Chloe up and down._

" _What?" Chloe said innocently, brushing down the sides of her jacket. She felt confident in her attire as she got ready for work that morning, but hearing Beca's tone of disappointment made her smile falter._

" _Did you wear that to work?" Beca raised her eyebrows, completely appalled that Chloe would dare to even put the flight attendant outfit on again._

" _Yeah. Underneath my scrubs." Chloe could barely meet Beca's eyes as she responded, terrified to look at the disappointment that was sprawled across the brunette's face._

 _She was ready for Beca to scream and yell about how disgusting it is to put that piece of monstrosity on, as if Chloe wore it just to tease Beca about her freshman year of college. But she was not prepared for Beca to use such an endearing name to address her._

" _Oh, sweetie, why?" Chloe could hear the sarcasm laced behind the words, but she couldn't help the feeling in her stomach when Beca used such an affectionate name to call her by._

" _Because it reminds me I was special once." Chloe looked at Beca, waiting for a response that will assure her that she didn't need the Bellas to be special. She waited for Beca to say something to boost her self-esteem because, although she may be confident in her body, she has never felt confident in her purpose in life._

 _She watched as Beca thought her next response, as if she was really going to compliment Chloe and make her feel like more than just a roommate. But she got nothing. As always, Beca blew her off and continued to show no affection._

"Beca, seriously. Do you even love me?" Chloe's voice was soft and broken now, her breath uneven from crying. She leaned over Beca's body, pressing her forehead to the brunette's and placing her hands on the back of Beca's chair.

Beca's eyes were still closed, but she could feel Chloe's tears dripping onto her thighs. She brought her hands to hold around the back of Chloe's neck, drawing her in closer so their lips brushed as Beca spoke.

"Of course I love you, Chloe. It's just, you know how difficult it is for me to really express myself. But I do try, I try my hardest for you." Beca's own tears were falling down her face, her lips were salty as she tried to pull Chloe in for a kiss.

But the redhead pulled away. She ripped her face from Beca, not liking the response she got. "You try? Beca, you treat me the same was as you treat Jesse and Amy and Stacie and every single one of your other friends. We live together, for God's sake, and you can't even share the same closet with me! I mean, are you so afraid of commitment that you won't even share clothes? You say you love me, but I don't see it. How much do you love me?"

Beca could tell where this conversation would lead. No matter what she said next, no matter how much she promised she would try harder and how much she loves the redhead, Beca knew this was the end for them.

They had a good seven years together as friends, another three years as a couple. But the fire has burned out, the spark is gone, and they can never be anything more than friends. If they could even be friends anymore after this fight.

So, Beca took a deep breath. She stood from her chair and walked towards Chloe. She grabbed the redhead's hands and looked into her eyes. Those beautiful blue eyes that had lost their light. Beca didn't make Chloe happy anymore and she knows it, she's no good for her.

"From here." Is all that Beca said. No explanation, no more words. That was the last thing Beca said to Chloe for months.

Chloe screamed and broke up with her. She packed her things and left without another word. Beca fell to her knees as soon as the front door was slammed shut. No matter how much she knew it was inevitable, she was never truly prepared for the heartbreak that came with actually losing Chloe.

* * *

It's been another seven years since the day Chloe left Beca. They aren't on bad terms, but their friendship is not what it used to be.

Chloe wasn't there at the Grammy's when Beca won her first, second, third, or fourth. Likewise, Beca wasn't there when Chloe opened up one vet shop, then another, and then her own nationwide chain. They weren't there for each other's accomplishments, but there was always a text or a Snapchat of only the big accomplishments.

Whenever there was a Bellas reunion, they were civil. No fighting, no arguing, not even cut-throat tension. But they barely talked to each other, or even looked at one another from across the room. All the other Bellas respected this, knowing that their breakup wasn't the best but that their friendship would always prevail. Even if it was barely holding on.

They barely knew anything about each other, aside from what was posted online or what was said in a Bellas group chat.

 _Chloe: I'm getting married!_

Beca read the same text over and over again. She ignored all the congratulations that were sent in from the other Bellas, and continued to read over Chloe's text.

She saw on Instagram that Chloe and Chicago had somehow magically found each other in the heart of Chicago, the city itself. Ironically. And she knew that they were dating. For five years strong now. But she never could have prepared herself for the hurt of knowing that Chloe finally loves someone new; that she loves someone better than Beca.

So Beca sent a generic "congratulations" text before she went back to the studio, creating a brand new song. She always wrote best from the heart. Which was probably why she was never a successful music producer or artist when she was with Chloe; she was still incapable of tapping into the depths of her heart and releasing all the emotions that were locked inside.

But when Chloe left, Beca knew no other feeling than love and hate. Love for Chloe, the beautiful woman she had always been in love with but had no way of conveying that love to the fullest extent. Hate for herself, the cold and distant woman she had always been and had never been able to change, even for the love of her life.

Beca was hurt more now than ever before; she always felt something in her heart that maybe, just maybe, she and Chloe could beat whatever had driven them apart. That maybe one day, they could learn to be together. That they could learn to be better for each other.

But now it was too late.

Chloe was with Chicago, and Beca was writing an unrequited love song for someone who could never be hers again.

* * *

Beca was invited to the wedding. Much to both girls' dismay, however, Beca was on tour. She was playing in Atlanta the night of Chloe's wedding, which was held in New York.

"How we doing, Atlanta?" Beca shouted into the microphone. The crowd cheered back at her. She always revelled in those large crowds that would scream back as a response, no matter what it was she said.

"Tonight is a special night. I met someone right here in Atlanta about sixteen years ago. Without that person, I would not be the musician I am today. This is a brand new song; I have not played it for anyone else and it hasn't been released anywhere. Not even my band knows it yet. This song was inspired by that person I met all those years ago. You know who you are."

Beca took a deep breath. She walked over to the on-stage piano and sat down. She let her fingers graze over the keys for a moment before she started playing the introductory notes.

The entire stadium went silent. Never had Beca played such a slow song before. Most of her songs were closer to the pop-punk side, with a mix of EDM. It was her sound.

Acoustic was not.

 _Somebody said you got a new friend_

 _Does he love you better than I can?_

 _There's a big black sky over my town_

 _I know where you're at, I bet he's around_

She could already feel the emotions building up. She glanced to her right, looking out to the crowd, and everybody was stunned. Most people had their phones out and recording the new song, thinking they could make some money off releasing the song. But nobody was prepared to see Beca on the verge of tears, less than thirty seconds into the song.

 _And yeah, I know it's stupid_

 _But I just gotta see it for myself_

Beca paused playing for just a moment. She let the anticipation of the chorus build up. As soon as she heard nothing else except for her own heartbeat, she played the next keys on the piano.

 _I'm in the corner, watching you kiss him, oh oh oh_

 _I'm right over here, why can't you see me, oh oh oh_

 _And I'm giving it my all, but I'm not the girl you're taking home, ooh_

 _I keep dancing on my own_

There were tears in her eyes; she could barely see the piano keys that were lying just under her fingers. She didn't know how she was supposed to finish singing the song when she felt her voice beginning to waver. But she knew she couldn't stop performing now. She couldn't take back all that she's already said.

 _I'm just wanna dance all night_

 _And I'm all messed up, I'm so out of line, yeah_

 _Stilettos and broken bottles_

 _I'm spinning around in circles_

 _And I'm in the corner, watching you kiss him, oh_

 _I'm right over here, why can't you see me, oh_

 _And I'm giving it my all, but I'm not the girl you're taking home, ooh_

 _I keep dancing on my own_

 _And oh no_

She closed her eyes and let her body take over the rest of the song. She no longer needed to look at where the keys were, her tear-filled eyes were useless now. In her mind, all she saw was red hair and blue eyes. She lost herself in the music.

 _So far away but still so near_

 _The lights come up, the music dies_

 _But you don't see me standing here_

 _I just came to say goodbye_

 _I'm in the corner, watching you kiss him, oh_

 _And I'm giving it my all, but I'm not the girl you're taking home, ooh_

 _I keep dancing on my own_

 _And oh no_

 _Sit down in the corner, watching you kiss him, oh no_

 _And I'm right over here, why can't you see me, oh no_

 _And I'm giving it my all, but I'm not the girl you're taking home, ooh_

 _I keep dancing on my own_

 _So far away, but still so near_

 _The lights come up, the music dies_

 _But you don't see me standing here_

Beca couldn't hold back the tears now. Her hands were wet and the crowd was loud. She never intended for it to be a successful song, but she knew that, with the emotion she conveyed that night, she owes her next few Grammy's to Chloe.

Beca gathers herself together and finishes the rest of her concert. She heads backstage after and pulls up her phone. On it, there are multiple texts from Fat Amy and Aubrey. And one from Chloe.

 _Fat Amy: Beca, Aubrey is going to kill you._

 _Aubrey: Beca, I am going to kill you._

 _Aubrey: Somebody at the wedding said you performed a new song tonight. Chloe, being the ever-supporting ex-girlfriend she is, decided to take time out from her own wedding reception and have your performance broadcasted to the entire wedding. Then you pulled that new song out of your ass and Chloe is crying. She's married now, Beca. You don't get to love her anymore._

 _Fat Amy: Chloe's a bumbling mess and Chicago doesn't know what to do. The whole wedding is a disaster._

 _Aubrey: Get your head out of your ass, Beca. You had your chance and you blew it. You couldn't even tell her how much you love her, and you expect her to stay? Bullshit._

 _Fat Amy: That was a really dick move Beca, nobody is happy with you right now._

 _Chloe: Please, Beca. I'm married now. I don't love you anymore._

Beca felt her heart shatter. She didn't bother reading the rest of the texts from Amy and Aubrey. The only text that mattered anymore was the one from Chloe.

It was the one message that told Beca she had really fucked up. But that night, she did everything as she was supposed to. She finally showed Chloe how much she loves her and that's exactly the emotion Chloe was looking for seven years ago.

Beca's too late now.

She knows she shouldn't. She knows it's wrong of her to. But she manages to text Chloe back. A single message. No explanation, no other words.

 _Beca: I still love you. From here._

* * *

It's been twelve years since Chloe's wedding. She now has two kids, a boy and a girl. Chicago passed away three years ago when he was deployed again. She still misses him, and she still loves him, but she's happy again.

Chloe and Beca have managed to fix their relationship. They are best friends again, in fact, and are even dating. Beca's feelings for Chloe haven't faltered in all the years they've spent apart.

* * *

Beca and Chloe are married now. They spent thirty years together, raising the two children. The oldest, James, is a veterinarian like his mother. He has taken over Chloe's chain of business, and matching it with his business degree, the company has more than flourished.

The younger of the two, Samantha, is a teacher. She teaches underprivileged children, aged four to eighteen, how to play instruments and sing, whilst also partnering with Beca's former record label to offer musical scholarships for the older kids.

Mrs. and Mrs. Mitchell are proud of their family. They've raised selfless and successful children, who are both now happily married to their own love of their lives. Beca is 74 years old, Chloe is 77.

As Beca lays in the hospital, Chloe accepts her wife's fate. "I love you, Beca."

Beca held Chloe's hand, and closing her eyes for the very last time, she replies, "To here."


End file.
